"We live and we learn"; Unlucky British rider can put tough debut year at Visma | Lease a Bike behind him

Visma | Lease a Bike is in the middle of the Tour of the Algarve with a team that consists mainly of guys who had a lot of bad luck last season. Everyone knows the stories of Jonas Vingegaard and Wout van Aert, but Ben Tulett and Loe van Belle were also on the sidelines for a long time. The Brit spoke to IDLProCycling.com in Portugal about his first year at Visma | Lease a Bike.

Tulett joined Visma | Lease a Bike from INEOS Grenadiers at the beginning of 2024, where he couldn't wait to show what he could do in his first season. In the first six months, the hill classics were his main goal, but in the end, he would never appear at the start in top condition. After being forced to give up on the Tour of the Basque Country, he did start in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, but without playing a significant role.

Soon after, the focus shifted to the Vuelta a Espana, a race Tulett spent several weeks preparing for over the summer. However, things went wrong in the final preparatory race: the Brit crashed in the second stage and injured his shoulder, bringing his season to an early end in early August. In total, Tulett only had just over twenty days of racing spread throughout 2024.

Read more below the photo!

Tulett is 'back on track'

"That shoulder injury was a major setback because I couldn't go to the Vuelta because of the fracture," Tulett recalls at the beginning of 2025. "I was disappointed about that. But anyway, as they say, you also learn from these setbacks, giving you more motivation. The fact that I couldn't ride the Vuelta, even though I had prepared well for it, is unfortunately part of cycling. We live, and we learn."

As a result, a plan was put together in the winter for Tulett to start in the Tour Down Under, but that was also eventually canceled. "Unfortunately, I had the flu just before I planned to travel to Australia. That delayed the start of my season, which was a shame. But now we are back on track, and I am looking forward to the next races," he says, putting a positive spin on things.

Read more below the photo!

Tulett starts season well: "That gives confidence"

Tulett finally got his season underway in the Clasica Jaén. In that Spanish gravel race, he immediately showed himself to be upfront. Despite a minor crash, Tulett made an enormously strong impression and would eventually finish ninth. "Things were already going well in Jaén, so I was delighted. I felt great and was able to start the season with good legs and a great feeling, so that gives you confidence."

Even Wout van Aert saw that the Brit was performing better than himself, after which the Belgian sacrificed himself for his younger teammate. "It was great that Wout rode in front of me. I think it says a lot about our team. Everyone wants to help each other; this was a perfect example of that attitude. Wout has always been a role model for me, from a young age, so that was a lovely moment for me," said Tulett, junior world cyclo-cross champion in 2018 and 2019. Fun fact: when he arrived at Visma | Lease a Bike, he received a shirt from his idol, Van Aert.

In 2024, the two did not race together, but they will in early 2025. After the Tour of the Algarve - in which Tulett made a lasting impression on the Alto de Foia and remained second to last in his team - the only 23-year-old British rider is working his way up to an Italian block via two one-day French races. Tulett will also get opportunities for himself this year as part of the White Jersey Group. 'After my shoulder injury last year, I am also happy to be racing with the team again. I am even more looking forward to the upcoming races.

Read also

"My legs were good, but tactically it wasn't great": Vingegaard reflects on Alto de Foia

After the yet another Algarve incident, Vingegaard and Degenkolb say something needs to change: "Never seen anything like it before"

Course and results of Tour of the Algarve 2025 | Van Aert will have to do better, maybe the day after Meeus' victory

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Get every week the latest news about CYCLING in your inbox!

Subscribe